Tray
Tiffany & Co.
(American, active 1837–present)
about 1878
Object PlaceNew York, NY
Medium/TechniqueSilver, copper, gold, brass, and silver gilt
DimensionsLength: 80 cm (31 1/2 in.)
Height x width: 7 × 49.2 cm (2 3/4 × 19 3/8 in.)
Height x width: 7 × 49.2 cm (2 3/4 × 19 3/8 in.)
Credit LineWilliam Francis Warden Fund, Mary S. and Edward J. Holmes Fund, John H. and Ernestine A. Payne Fund, Arthur Tracy Cabot Fund, Frank B. Bemis Fund, Edwin E. Jack Fund, Elizabeth M. and John F. Paramino Fund in memory of John F. Paramino, Boston Sculptor, Morris and Louise Rosenthal Fund, and William E. Nickerson Fund
Accession number2019.1980
On View
Not on viewClassificationsSilver hollowware
Collections
This monumental tray beautifully captures the technical innovation, masterful craftsmanship, and artistic design sensibility that made Tiffany & Co. an international leader in silversmithing in the 19th century. The gourd-shaped silver tray, inlaid with various colored metal alloys depicting a gourd, leaves, and insects, represents Tiffany & Co.’s interpretation of Japanese Meiji-era (1868–1912) metalwork designs. The harmony of the shape with the decorative motifs, the skilled and delicate melding of copper, gold, and other alloys to create pictorial effects, and the sheer size of this tray rank it among Tiffany’s finest.
InscriptionsEngraved on top surface with stylized vine and tendril monogram "IMJ"Provenance1878, Exhibited by Tiffany & Co. in their award-winning displays at the Paris Worlds Exposition Universelle; sold in France (evidenced by the French import control mark on tray); 1987, exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in “The Silver of Tiffany & Co., 1850-1987” from September 9-November 8, 1987 (exhibition sponsored by Tiffany & Co on the occasion of its 150th anniversary); 2011, sold at Christie’s New York (sale 2413, Important American Silver Including Magnificent Tiffany, January 20, 2011, lot 56); private collection, London
